Lawyer??

[morilloe]

QUICK QUESTION...
I have been reading some of your success stories (LucyMo, etc.) regarding the J-1 Waiver....my question is to everyone who has had success--DID YOU APPLY ON YOUR OWN OR DID YOU HIRE A LAWYER?? When I read the travel.state.gov webpage it seemed pretty straight forward...very much like, "follow the steps and you should be ok". I consulted a lawyer and he is asking $5,000 for the J-1 waiver--It is a pretty high sum but I don't know what to make of this. I need your input ASAP as my J-1 expires in May 2006.

Also, if I end up applying on my own, what "additional documentation" do you suggest I submit??

Thank you beforehand for your time and your help.

 

[LucyMO]

on my own. I already wrote somewhere about two of my friends from the same program who hired lawyers who didn't do anything and just took the money.

 

[cvv011]

depends on a case

There are many things to consider her. In my case (USIA sponsor, hardship waiver, no obvious argument), hiring a laywer really paid off. Looking back now, I might have had only about 10-15% shot at getting the same result without a laywer. There are many details here, and again it depends on a unique case. It is all about risks involved, the cost, and the benefits received.

 

[LucyMO]

my friend spent about $3,000 on a useless lawyer. Hardship case. Lawyer "helped" with the statement of reason by composing a two-page "essay". My friend got a rejection, fired a lawyer, reopened a case, wrote a 70-page (!!!!!) statement of reason that included affidavits from doctors and similar evidence, and got her waiver.